BUYERS

Your Needs Come First

Finding and buying the right home is a highly personalized process, and it all begins by identifying your needs.

  • The values, interests and priorities you want this move to support
  • The features you are looking for in a home
  • How a neighborhood can best match your needs and lifestyle
  • How the homefinding process will need to be tailored to fit your plans
  • The support you expect to receive from us

Look Ahead to the HomeFinding Process

The following questions will help identify how finding and buying a home can be an enjoyable experience for you.

  • What is your time frame?
  • Who will be included in the homefinding and buying decisions?
  • Thinking of previous homefinding experiences, what were the most positive features of those experiences?
  • Were there any unpleasant features of your previous homefinding experiences that you hope to avoid this time?
  • What are your expectations of us as your real estate professionals?
  • What specific services and support do you expect?

Define Your Ideal Home

The property you buy will be much more than a house; it will be your home.  The following questions will help us find your ideal home:

  • How many people will be living in your household?
  • What would you consider a comfortable commute?
  • What are the most important activities for the members of your household?
  • What is something you disliked about the house or area where you lived previously?
  • What are the most "must have" features of your ideal home and neighborhood?

HomeFinding Process

Finding a house typically includes many of the following elements.  We will be your resource and guide every step of the way.

Your Single Source for Property Information

We have access to virtually every property for sale in this market, regardless of whether or not it is being offered by a Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices real estate professional, and will show you the homes that best match your requirements including:

  • All homes marketed by our network members
  • All properties listed by other brokers through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS)
  • Many properties offered by "For Sale by Owner"
  • Properties advertised on the internet
  • Open Houses
  • Properties displaying "For Sale" signs

How to Look at Homes

Discovering the right home should be an exciting event.  As a Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Newlin-Miller REALTORS agency, our commitment is to make your home search as stress-free as possible.  Part of this process will include:

  • Identify up-front what is affordable.
  • We will select only those properties that most closely meet your unique needs and interests.
  • We will schedule time to look at homes and neighborhoods.
  • If the seller or their real estate professional is at the property when we are there, it would be best fo you to limit your conversation with them.
  • To help us find the right home for you, we will ask you to tell us your thoughts about each property you see - the positives and the negatives.
  • We will continue to assess your needs and buying criteria.

Submitting an Offer

Once you have found the right property, the next step is to make the offer to the seller.  Parts include:

  • Determine the price you want to offer.
  • Decide on financing
    • Items of personal property you want included
    • Home warranty, inspections, repairs etc
    • Closing date and possession
  • We will present your offer and negotiate with the seller through their sales professional for your best interests.
  • Once you have reached an agreement with the seller, you will have a firm contract to purchase the home.

Important Ways to Protect Your Interests

There are several ways to help support a trouble-free home purchase:

  • A written property disclosure statement from the seller will reveal any problems with the house and the surrounding area that you need to know about.
  • Professional inspections can reveal structural, roof, termite, and other problems with the property that the seller will need to remedy.
  • A home warranty service agreement can give you peace of mind by providing repair-or-replace coverage of major home operating systems and appliances.
  • A walk-through before closing will allow you to make sure required work has been taken care of and that the property is ready to become yours.

Completing Your Home Purchase

It can take 15-90 days to complete all the steps involved in a home sale, depending on the complexity of the transactions.  We will work closely with everyone involved in the transaction to help ensure that it moves ahead as smoothly as possible.  We will:

  • Explain to you in detail all the steps that will occur and answer your questions.
  • Work with the seller's broker to see that they fulfill their responsibilities under contract.
  • Stay in touch with the settlement officer, title officer, lender and others to help coordinate  their activities and to help keep the transaction moving forward.
  • Communicate with you on a regular basis so that you can stay informed and as worry-free as possible.